Door latch



Dec, 16, 1924.

N. B. HURD DOOR LATCH Filed May l1, 1923 AORNEYS;

Patented Dec. 16, 1924.

KVUNITED YSTATES PATENT OFFICE.

NORMAN B. HURD, 0F NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE AMERICAN HARDWARE CORPORATION, OF NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

DOOR LATCH.

Application led May 11, 1923. Serial No. 638,245.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, NORMAN B. HURD, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at New Britain, Connecticut, have invented new and useful Improvements in a Door Latch, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a door latch, and is particularly though not exclusively adapted for automobile doors.

The general object of the invention is to 'improve certain details of construction in latches of the character indicated.

It is another object to provide a door latch with means for preventing the handle or knob spindle from rusting into the rollback.

It is a further object to provide a wrought metal latch member which will be cheap to manufacture and of light, strong construction.

In the drawings, which show for illustrative purposes only, a preferred form of the invention:

Fig. 1 is a sectional view through a d oor latch embodying features of my invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a latch member.

5 indicates a conventional plate constituting part of a latch case. In the present instance, the forward end of the plate 5 is angularly bent and provided with an exten-ding lip 6 serving as an abutment. A latch member 7 is pivotally mounted at 8 'in a suitable aperture in the plate 5. A rollback 9 is mounted on the casing and is urged into one position by means of the spring 10 interposed between a lug 11 on the plate 5 and a lug 12 on the rollback yoke 13. A latch retracting yoke 14 engages a pin 15 within the body of the latch member 7 and the opposite end of the yoke is preferably provided with fingers such as 16, engaging behind fingers 17 17 on the body of the rollback. A securing yoke 19 serves to hold the parts in position on the plate, and in the form shown the securing yoke 19 is provided with lugs 20-20 extending through apertures in the plate 5, and it will be understood that these lingers are preferably riveted over to secure all of the parts in 0perative relation. In order to urge the latch member 7 into the outward position, a spring 21 may be interposed between the securing yoke 19 and a lug on the latch retracting yoke 14. A latch as thus far described is well kno-wn in the art, and has been described merely to illustrate the ape plication of the novel features of the invention.

The latch member 7 may be formed with wrought metal end plates 30-30, which are preferably steel stampings. Interposed between the two end plates are a plurality of laminations such as 31, and these laminations may likewise be steel stampings. In the form shown, the intermediate laminations are of substantially L shape, so that the latch body is hollow and therefore lighter than a solid latch. The end plates and laminations are rigidly secured together by suitable means such as a rivet 32, and the pivot pins 8 and 15 may likewise help to hold the parts together.

It will be seen that with a latch member 7 constructed as herein described, all the advantages of a wrought metal latch are secured, and that a very light, strong and cheap construction is produced.

lVhile I have disclosed a preferred form of my invention, I wish it understood that many changes may be made within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. As an article of manufacture, a latch member comprising end plates of steel, and a plurality of substantially L-shaped laminations interposed between said steel end plates, a rivet extending through said end plates and through the interposed laminations at the angles of the L for securing said end plates and laminations rigidly together, a pivot pin between the two end plates and lying within the hollow body formed by the L-shaped laminations, and pivot means for pivotally mounting said latch member on a latch case.

2. As an article of manufacture, a latch nieinber con'lprisinga wrought metal body formed of t plurality of luniinutions, the two end laniinations being Substantially solid and the intermediate laminations being cut away so as to form it hollow latch body member, a. pivot pin secured to Said end laminations and lying Within the hollow body, a Second pivot pin extending through said end und intermediate laminations, and a rivet extending through all of said laminations, said pins and rivet serving to secure said laininations together.

NORMAN B. HURD. 

